Covering Emotions
by deksi
Summary: Just a one shot story. Deeks goes undercover and ends up injured.


**Hey folks! This is just a one shot story. Let me know what you think! Much love xxx**

**Disclaimer: no characters of NCISLA belong to me**

**COVERING EMOTIONS**

Hetty stirred her spoon in her freshly brewed peppermint tea as she sat at her desk early one morning. She smiled as each member of her team came waltzing into the bullpen, dumping their bags on their desks. Hetty frowned as she glanced over at the desk that had a member missing, away on assignment. Deeks had been hauled back to the LAPD for an undercover operation that had seen him away from the team for the last two weeks. She hated the fact that LAPD could whisk him away so easily and readily from her and wished that Deeks would hurry up and sign the damn form she gave him to make him an NCIS agent instead of being a pawn for the LAPD.

Hetty had no jurisdiction over the LAPD, as much as she tried at times, and she had no idea whatsoever as to the assignment Deeks was tasked with. It always worried her when he went back. LAPD was not particularly fond of the blonde haired cop but he was their best undercover Detective and was called back on a much too regular basis for Hetty's liking.

"Isn't it ever so quiet and peaceful without Shaggy around the place, G?" Sam smiled.

"I dunno, I kind of miss the surfer drawl, to be honest" Callen answered, "He's always got a lame joke to tell"

"Lame being the right word" Sam nodded, "Anyone hear from him? Kens?"

"Not a thing, Sam. Usually if he's on assignment I at least get a text saying he's fine and do you miss me Fern? But I've had nothing since he left here…I don't know whether to be mad at him for not checking in or worried that he _hasn't _checked in with me" Kensi sighed.

"Hetty told me she doesn't even know how he is. So LAPD has got him locked down tight this time" Callen looked Kensi.

Hetty's phone gave a ring and she picked it up and glanced at the name on the screen.

"Lieutenant Bates, am I right to assume that you are sending Mr Deeks back to me as soon as possible?" Hetty asked tightly.

"Actually Hetty Deeks is missing. He missed his check in time last night…I was wondering if you had any sign from him?"

"Missing? Who was handling him? Was it you Lieutenant? Because let me tell you, if Mr Deeks is harmed at all, I will be holding you personally responsible"

"Yes Hetty I was handling him. I thought he had everything under control. He's our best undercover cop Hetty, you know that. I couldn't pass this assignment to just anyone" Bates sighed.

Hetty saw Callen look her way with a frown and watched him stride over. She knew her own hearing was impeccable. She overhead Deeks tell Detective Danny Williams of the 5-O taskforce from Hawaii that she had ears like a bat. She had to smile at her cheeky team member sometimes. But Hetty also knew that Callen also had very good ears and had heard Deeks' name mentioned and promptly came to investigate.

"Where was Deeks' last known location?" she asked Lt Bates and glanced up at Callen, "That is very near our boatshed. Leave it with me Lieutenant, I will call you back when I have something…I expect the same courtesy from you of course…thank you"

"Hetty? What is it?" asked Callen warily. She relayed Lt Bates admission of Deeks' disappearance and his last known location.

"Eric!" Callen yelled upstairs to the tech room.

"What's up?" Eric asked, appearing over the balcony.

"Check the surveillance cameras around the boatshed and inside it. Also check the surrounding areas. We are looking for Deeks. His last check in was from around that area"

"On it" the young tech guru nodded, before disappearing into the darkened room.

"G, what're you thinking?" asked Sam.

"That if Deeks is injured or hurt, hopefully he'll realise where he is and make his way to the boatshed for safety" replied Callen.

"What are we waiting here for? Let's get to the boatshed" Kensi grabbed her keys from her bag.

"Found something!" Eric came bouncing down the stairs. He glided his fingers over the touch screen of his tablet, forwarding the pictures onto the TV screen in the bullpen.

"This internal camera….look at this" Eric pointed to the screen. The picture soon appeared of a scruffy dog standing on his hind legs, barking repeatedly at the TV screen in the boatshed.

"Oh my God, that's Monty!" Kensi gasped.

"If Monty's there, then Deeks can't be too far away. Keep the cameras on it Eric. We're headed to the boatshed" Callen ordered as the team followed him out the automatic sliding doors.

The team hurried to Kensi's SUV and scrambled in as Sam roared the engine into life. He broke a few road rules as he sped towards their destination. The consequences of his driving would have to be sorted out later. Right now, he and the rest of the team just wanted to get to the boatshed as fast as they could.

Sam parked nearby and as they got out, he, Callen and Kensi drew their guns from their backs and warily approached the building.

"Let's go. Kensi and I will take the back door, Sam you take the other door" Callen nodded.

Callen and Kensi counted quietly to three then burst in at the same time as Sam. Monty started barking and even growling as they entered guns at the ready.

"Monty hey boy…it's Kensi" she lowered her voice and softly approached him. Monty instantly recognised her and happily trotted to her licking her hands as she bent to pat him. "Where's Deeks, Monty?"

"I'm here" Deeks stammered, before stumbling to the ground.

"Deeks!" Callen, Sam and Kensi ran to their friend who was grimacing painfully, holding his leg.

Deeks was dressed in his usual homeless person clothes, with a tattered beanie and smelly overcoat and ripped jeans. Sam quickly checked him over and found a small stab wound on his left arm and a much larger stab wound on his left leg that would definitely need major work. Bruises were on his stomach and face and blood was dripping from his nose. It seemed he also had a concussion as he was dropping in and out of consciousness.

"Eric we need an ambulance here now" Callen shouted in his cell phone.

"Deeks come on open your eyes for me" Kensi held his hand, while gently wiping his bloody nose with a rag, "Come on stay with me"

"Monty…is he okay?" Deeks slurred.

"Monty is fine…he's right here. Here boy!" Kensi whistled. The dog trotted over and licked his owners face.

"Hey buddy you okay huh?" Deeks gave him a small pat behind his ear, before he dropped out again.

"Deeks! No stay awake…you need to stay awake for me" Kensi shook his arm.

"Eric status on that ambo?" Sam yelled.

"Should be hearing the sirens right about now…" Eric replied.

The two paramedics were greeted outside by Callen who informed them that he and the others were Federal Agents and Deeks was LAPD but worked with them and was an important member of their team. Nodding, they hurried to their patient and quickly transferred him to a gurney before wheeling him outside to their ambulance.

"Anyone want to ride with him?" one of the paramedics asked as the other started the engine.

"I'll go with him. He's my partner" Kensi stated as she clambered aboard.

"We'll be right behind you, Kens. We'll take Monty to the vet's nearby to check him over. I'll call Hetty right now" Callen nodded as he pulled out his cell phone.

The ride to the hospital didn't take long, but it seemed to Kensi to take forever. She held Deeks' hand tight all the way, reassuring him constantly she was there and idly pulling the stray hairs away from his eyes.

On arrival, Deeks was seen quickly by doctors before being wheeled straight to the operating theatre for surgery to his stab wounds. A junior doctor told Kensi he would need the wounds cleaned out to minimise any risk of infection and to clean out any dirt and muck that might already be in there. He assured her Deeks should be fine and he would come to see her when the operation was over, but that didn't really give any real comfort to Kensi. She always disliked hospitals and this time was no exception. She knew of course that Deeks was in capable hands but there was always a nagging doubt that knotted her stomach and would not go away no matter how much she told herself she was being utterly ridiculous and her partner was going to be fine.

Callen and Sam soon joined her in the waiting area with Hetty. Three awful cups of coffee later, Kensi saw the surgeon appear and unmask his face before walking to the waiting agents.

"Detective Deeks had a major stab wound to his left leg, which we have cleaned and stitched as well as a smaller stab wound on his arm that we have also attended to. His bruises on his face should go in time, and his stomach has bruising so he'll be off solid food for about a week while that swelling subsides a little. After that he can have solids again. I'll like to keep him overnight at least to dress his wounds and check infections but after that, if all looks well he should be right to go home. I must say he is one very lucky man" Doctor Ian Donnelly said.

"Thank you very much Doctor. Can we see him?" Hetty spoke up on her team's behalf.

"He's in recovery and will be on the ward about another half an hour. You can see him then. Perhaps not everyone at once though. He's been through a lot tonight"

"Very well" Hetty nodded, "Thank you again"

The team waited patiently, well as patiently as they could. Kensi couldn't stop pacing up and down so much that Sam began to get slightly annoyed.

"Kensi! Sit down please… pacing is not going to get you to see Deeks any sooner"

"I can't Sam…not until I…I can't" Kensi twisted her fingers irritably.

A nurse came over a few minutes later, "Are you Detective Deeks' friends?"

"Yes we are. Can we see him?" Callen answered.

"Yes follow me. He's in Room 256" Nurse Angela smiled.

The team followed Angela down the hall and up one flight of stairs to Deeks' room on the right side of the hallway. He had his leg heavily bandaged and a drip to his arm. Monitors were quietly beeping nearby but Deeks was asleep.

"Well that's the quietest I've heard him" Sam smiled.

"Enjoy it while it lasts" Callen grinned back.

"Gee that's really letting him know you care guys care" Kensi growled, "You guys talk to him now, I'll see him after you"

Sam and Callen didn't spend long with the sleeping Deeks and felt it more important for Kensi to be with her partner.

"He's all yours Kensi" Callen smiled.

"Yeah don't forget to kiss him goodnight" Sam winked.

Kensi rolled her eyes and walked into the room. She gasped when she saw her partner lying there and pulled over the chair to be closer to the bed. Gently she reached out and held his hand, stroking it with her long slender fingers.

"Deeks….please wake up. I need you" she whispered.

He stirred a little, but didn't wake. He mumbled something but Kensi didn't quite catch what he was saying so she prodded him again;

"Deeks what did you say? I didn't get it"

"I love you Kensi" Deeks slurred.

Kensi's eyebrows shot up in surprise. She brushed it off as meaningless words said in the delirious state of recovery from anaesthetic. But what if it was true? She hadn't been in love for a very long time. Jack was the last one she really fell for. She knew they spent a lot of time together bot during work and after work too. Beers and pizza nights were regular occurrences. Sure, there were little moments when her stomach would do cartwheels when he smiled at her or said something that was totally Deeks but that didn't mean she loved him too…did it?

When Callen came in later to check on Deeks, he found Kensi curled up in the chair asleep, holding on tightly to Deeks' hand. He knew she would have an awful crick in her neck by now but he didn't have the heart to wake her. Deeks and Kensi had a really strong bond he was certain of that. He could tell the way they worked together and how playful their banter was that they were a perfect match as partners. _'Perhaps good work partners is not the only sort of partnership they would be good as'_ he thought as he pulled the blanket from the bed and gently wrapped it around Kensi's shoulders.

The next morning, Deeks stirred awake and looked to his right to see his beautiful brunette partner curled crookedly in the chair holding his hand. He squeezed her hand and hoarsely called out to her;

"Kensi, come on princess wake up". She groaned and rubbed her neck and smiled when she saw Deeks was awake.

"Hey you're finally awake…how are you feeling?"

"Not too bad…well considering I have been stabbed and bruises. I'm going to have a horrible scar now aren't I?"

"I'll let you see one of my scars if you are really good…and don't flirt with the nurses"

"Ooooh really? I feel better already"

"I'm sure", Kensi rolled her eyes. She stood to the side as the Doctor came in to see him on his rounds.

"Well Detective Deeks, you're awake. Let's check you out okay" the Doctor folded back the blankets covering his bandaged leg, "We'll get this re-dressed but the wound is healing well. I'd say there is a good chance you can go home probably tomorrow"

"Is surfing a possibility doc?" Deeks gave his best smile.

"I wouldn't want you opening up the stitches, so no surfing. However the salt water would do no harm to the wound itself and would aid in its healing so just wading in the water is allowable"

"As long as I can get to the beach then wading is what I'll have to do. Thanks doc" Deeks grinned.

"I'll see you later" the Doctor smiled and walked out the door.

Callen poked his head around the corner, "Is it okay to come in?"

"Hey, sure come on in" Deeks smiled waving Callen, Sam and Hetty inside.

"How you doing?" Sam asked.

"All good. You guys miss me?"

"Not really…I'm kidding Kensi" Callen said, noticing the death glare she was giving him. "Can you tell us what happened?"

Deeks looked at Hetty for approval for sharing his assignment details and she gave him a silent nod.

"Okay this is how it went. I was on assignment for LAPD. I had to go undercover for them as a homeless person…not the first time as you know. There has been a few homeless people go missing and I was tasked with finding out who was behind it. It wasn't easy but I did it…and got stabbed for my trouble".

"Go on Deeks" Sam was intrigued.

"Well after a politician was going through the area as a good will thing, you know a 'we'll clean up this area and help the homeless find better places' thing" Deeks made air quotes, "I saw the politician come back late in the night with heavy duty assistants like Sam and quietly take one homeless guy, Pete away. I never saw Pete again. I decided to see if she would take the bait with me. And she did. She purred like a kitten saying all the right emotional things a politician would say then gestured to her assistants. They took me side by side and shoved me into a van and drove me a couple of streets away to that old factory where that dry cleaner used to be. I managed to get out their grasp and handcuffed the politician. That's when the goons beat me up and I tried fighting back and got a knife in my arm and leg. They dumped me out in the dumpster and set fire to it and they took off at lightning speed. I scrambled out before the fire got to me and I realised I was near the boatshed and the rest is history".

"What about Monty?" Kensi asked, "We found him at the boatshed with you"

"He wasn't thrown in the van with me. He must have followed the van to the factory and then saw me get dumped outside. He walked with me to the boatshed. He's smarter than he looks."

"That he is Deeks", Callen smiled, "So who is the politician involved in knocking off the poor homeless people?"

"Senator Ashley Cox" Deeks nodded.

"Wow, that is…wow" Kensi shook her head.

"I'll be making a call about this Mr Deeks; you don't have to worry about her. I've also had very stern words to Lt Bates about his handling of this case" Hetty patted his arm.

"I was just thinking about that Hetty…if it's alright with you I'd like to hand in that form now" Deeks looked at her knowingly.

"I will take care of it Mr Deeks"

"Wait…what form?" Callen asked, looking between Deeks and Hetty.

"I gave Mr Deeks a form to resign from LAPD and sign his name to become and NCIS Agent fulltime. He declined at the time but I kept the form in my desk until the time came when Mr Deeks changed his mind"

"You knew he would change his mind?" Sam asked.

"Of course Mr Hanna, they always change their mind eventually. Come let us let Mr Deeks rest" Hetty touched Sam's arm.

A few days later Deeks was released out of hospital and was allowed home. Every day he headed to the beach with Monty wade in the cool salt water. He saw Kensi take off her shoes and drag her feet through the sand towards him and he waved and smiled as she neared.

"Hey what are you doing here?"

"Just thought I'd see if you'd like a pizza for dinner" Kensi smiled.

"I'm starving….your place or mine?"

"Mine?" Kensi shrugged.

"Let's go" he clipped on Monty's leash and they headed to Kensi's car.

Arriving at her apartment, Kensi led Monty to her small back yard as Deeks parked himself on her sofa.

"Awesome pizza Kens" he mumbled between bites.

"Ugh, didn't you ever learn not to talk with your mouth full?"

"Oh says the girl who eats non-stop"

Kensi sat quietly watching the TV, but her mind was somewhere else.

"Whatcha thinking about Kens?" Deeks turned and asked her.

"Just something you deliriously said at the hospital"

"Oh god…what did I say?" Deeks grimaced.

"I love you Kensi" she whispered.

"Oh…and what did you think about that?"

"That it didn't mean anything…you were still coming out of the anaesthetic"

"What if I did mean it Kens?"

She didn't know what to say… no words were coming out of her mouth in response.

"Okay I can see this has freaked you out but yes Kensi it is true. I love you…I am in love with you and…" he was seeing a different look to her face, one he hadn't seen before and was getting nervous as to what it meant, "Now you probably never want to see me again…so I think I better go"

He stood and started towards the door. "Deeks!" she called out to him. He turned and stared, waiting for an eternity for her response.

Kensi strode over and shut the door closed. She took his stubbled face in her hands and stood on her toes and kissed his lips. Instantly he responded in kind, deepening his kiss on her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"I am in love with you too" she whispered as she broke from his kiss.

"Well it took you long enough to get it through your head, I've known since the moment I met you Kensi that you were the one for me"

"I guess I can be a little dumb when it comes to admitting what's in my head"

"Kensi you are not dumb…just downright stubborn…Ouch!" Deeks rubbed his arm from where Kensi had just given him a jab.

"Shut up and kiss me Deeks"

**So there you go. Love it? Review it! Thanks xxx**


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